Life as a Christian Woman

There is no easy way to understand evil. Even our guidebook for life, the Bible, can’t begin to explain the evils that we can do to each other, that Satan inflicts on this world.

Sunday there was a shooting at a church. The sanctuary at the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church in Knoxville, Tenn., was packed with more than 200 folks, there to see a children’s production of the musical “Annie.” Two people were killed: 60-year-old Greg McKendry, and 61-year-old Linda Kraeger. Seven others were injured.

The day began innocently. The production was taking the place of the normal service, and was the “grand finale” to a summer workshop at the church. At 10:18, 58-year-old Jim David Adkisson of nearby Powell entered the sanctuary and began firing his 12-gauge shotgun. Eyewitness accounts say that he apparently didn’t attempt to shoot the children, as he walked past a staging area where kids were gathered, but took aim at adults in the pews.

Accounts say that McKendry stood in front of the shooter and took a bullet, attempting to protect others. His 16-year old foster son, Taylor Bessette, who was a member of the cast, said he wants to make sure that everyone knows that his stepdad died a hero. (watch teen describe foster dad as hero)

Members sprung into action and tackled the shooter, binding him with belts. Witnesses say that children were within just a couple of feet of the killer.

My first thoughts jump straight to the children. How will they get through this? I can’t imagine the horror they feel, the things they witnessed in a place that is supposed to be safe. One small girl is described as being “covered in blood.” How does a parent explain what happened in a way to make the child feel safe again?

And I think about the rest of us. This is an ugly illustration of how we are not safe from evil anywhere. Evil will seek us out, Satan wants to do us harm, and will use any agent to push through an agenda, his agenda, of sowing the world with fear, hatred and doubt. I’m sure at this moment Satan is relishing the people who are saying, “How could any God let this happen?” He is laughing at us, as he marches on in his battle against God.

But here is the truth. He will not win. Our God is an awesome God! Through this sadness, this evil, He is there. He preceded this event, and He will be there when the cameras leave. He will give the parents the right words, if only they will ask. He will be a comfort to the children.

We must hang on! We must cling to God, no matter what.

I don’t know much about Unitarian Universalism. The Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church describes itself as promoting freedom of expression, tolerance, reason, the search for truth and the dignity of each human being. According to the church’s website,

“TVUUC has a long and rich history of taking stands for social justice. Since the 1950s, our congregation has worked for desegregation, racial harmony, fair wages, women’s rights and gay rights.”

Don’t try to make sense of the attack… there is no sense to be made. It was a violent attack against a congregation that promotes peace and equality.

At this point, there is no known connection between the church and Adkisson. The Church is not close to his home, just over 12 miles away. There are many churches between Adkisson’s home and the church. What made him choose this one?

Adkisson is being held on a $1 million bond.

All that we can do at this point is pray… pray for the families of those who were killed. Pray for those who are injured. Pray for the children who witnessed this horrible tragedy.

And pray for Jim David Adkisson. This agent of evil is a child of God. Pray for healing of his soul, of whatever hurt drove him to commit this heinous crime. He is a child of God. He deserves our prayers.

We are in the midst of a long election season here in the United States. Now that we have narrowed the field to two primary candidates, Barack Obama (Democrat) and John McCain (Republican), we are inundated every day with stories on the two men… their likes, dislikes, spouses, children, education. And most importantly, their beliefs.

But how important is what they believe, really? The short answer is, very. As Christians we need to do all we can to make sure that we are voting for the man we feel God has chosen to lead this nation. But the reality is that by the time candidates make it to the national stage, they have become well-versed in what to say and how to say it. Their job is to get the most votes, to “court” the different communities that make up this nation. To that end, they will say what they need to say to get the votes.

John McCain

So we open magazines and newspapers and read statements that the candidates make about their faith journeys. We turn on television and see commentators debate whether the “religious right” is willing to back one candidate or will turn to another. And not only to we get to hear each candidate espouse their beliefs, but we get to hear the “dirty little lies” that the candidates will plant about each other (oh sure, THEY don’t do it, but their operatives do. Enough said).

But here is the sad truth. We can’t know the heart of any candidate any more than we can know the heart of the stranger sitting next to us on a bus. We can’t know another’s heart, only God can. So what is a Christian to do?

Pray.

Seems simple enough, but once again, the greatest tool that a Christian has, and the easiest one to use, is the one needed for this task. We may not know John McCain or Barack Obama’s heart, but we can pray and follow God’s direction. We can pray that He will lead us in the direction we should go.

Barack Obama

But it doesn’t stop, or even start, there. We should start praying now, not just for God’s guidance in who to vote for, but that God is preparing the man who will win this election to lead. And by lead, I mean follow God’s leadership. We need to pray for our future president to have the heart of a servant, the ears of the faithful, and the discernment of the saints. We need to pray that God will provide him with honorable men and women to assist him, and that his family will be strong and up to the task.

And once the election comes (finally!), no matter who is elected, we need to continue in prayer for the man that is chosen to lead. It sure is easy to slap a bumper sticker on your car that says, “Don’t blame me, I voted for the other guy,” but it doesn’t do anyone any good. Prayer does.

We need to come together as one and pray for our leaders. And not just our national leaders, but our local and state leaders, as well. All these men and women need our prayers, too.

So let’s all come together in prayer for the men who are running for our highest office. Pray that whoever is elected, God will be in control.

South Carolina is proposing a license plate that says, “I Believe” with a Christian cross and stained glass window on it. But not everyone is happy about it, including some Christians.

In fact, a group called Americans United for Separation of Church and State, based in Washington, D.C., has filed suit in Federal Court to stop the plate from seeing the light of day. The suit was filed on behalf of two Christian pastors, a humanist pastor, a rabbi, and the Hindu American Foundation.

Retired Methodist minister Rev. Thomas Summers, who has joined the lawsuit, believes that the plate provokes discrimination.

“I think this license plate really is divisive and creates the type of religious discord I’ve devoted my life to healing,” according to Summers.

Rev. Robert Knight feels the plate “cheapens” Christianity. “As an evangelical Christian, I don’t think civil religion enhances the Christian religion. It compromises it,” Knight said. “That’s the fundamental irony. It’s very shallow from a Christian standpoint.”

This has created a firestorm in South Carolina. Some decry “bumper theology” while others believe this is a blow for Christians against those who have sought to remove God from virtually every area of life.

The case is based on the fact that the bill is moving through the state house. However, in South Carolina, any group can create a specialty plate, as long as they have 400 prepaid orders, or collect a $4,000 deposit.

My opinion? Drop the bill and I guarantee the churches in the state will come up with the money. What will those who are so offended by the license plate do then? Demand a repeal of the state law?

Probably.

What I don’t get is the high and mighty attitude of the theologians in the AUSCS who are so violently against the plates. No, I don’t think that having a Christian license plate is going to save the world, but if a Christian wants to have one, who cares? How can this plate be offensive?

The real problem I have here is that free speech seems to apply more and more to others, and less and less to Christians. When I read headlines from around the world about the persecution of those who merely want to meet in fellowship, I can hardly believe it. But now those headlines are coming from western Europe, England, Australia. Preachers in parts of London are being warned that their sermons and outreach can be construed as a hate crime.

So what was once unthinkable is now becoming reality, right here in our own backyards.

I guess I sound like an alarmist. I don’t mean to be. But I do think that our rights are being taken away without so much as a whimper. And when we do speak up, we are branded “fundamentalists.”

No, folks, we are just Christians.

Bills aimed at strengthening the right to free speech for those who wish to teach the full range of views on evolutionary theory are currently making their way through several state legislatures, and a documentary may be the driving force. The film “Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed” examined claims that professors in the fields of science (including biology, chemistry and astronomy) have suffered at the hands of colleagues and higher ups. In some instances, the professors have been denied tenure, been censored, and a few have even been fired, all because they questioned Charles Darwin’s theory that life forms are nothing more than random mutations that have survived the wars of natural selection.

The bills aim to protect those teachers and students who believe that there is evidence of intelligent design (ID).

In Louisiana, the Louisiana Science Education Act passed by a vote of 35-0 in the state senate, and support has crossed party lines. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Ben Nevers, does not allow for the teaching of any religious belief, but only science. Nevers, who has not seen the documentary, brought in Caroline Crocker, a biological scientist who appears in the film, to testify before the Louisiana House Committee on Education.

“The freedom to think and consider more than one option is part of what has given America her competitive edge in the international marketplace of idea,” said Crocker. “The current denial of academic freedom rights for htose who are judged politically incorrect may put this in jeopardy.”

In addition to Louisiana, legislation has been introduced in Alabama, Florida (which did not pass the bill), Michigan, Missouri and South Carolina. While all the bills vary, all have the same intent… to protect the right of free speech and allow the discussion of a full range of scientific topics in the classroom.

The Discovery Institute, a non-partisan “think tank” in Seattle, Wash., has posted a model academic freedom bill on its web site, designed to provide educators and students at all levels of academia protection (elementary, high school and graduate school levels).

Let’s take a deeper look and see what this means for Christians, and those who believe that God truly created the universe as is told in the book of Genesis. These bills absolutely do not allow for the teaching of religion, or different religious theories as to how life began. However, they do allow for other scientific theories beyond Darwinism to be taught, including intelligent design.

I don’t claim to be a scientist or theologian. However, on the surface these bills seem to be a victory. Rather than Darwinism being taught as fact, it will be taught as theory… and only one of several theories. In my perfect world, God’s creation would be taught as the true story of the beginning of life (as it is!). And that is why many of us have chosen to either home school our children or send them to private Christian schools. But those options are not available to everyone. Now, perhaps, we at least have a fighting chance to include other opinions, so that Darwinism can truly be exposed.

I would like to end with a joke (I know, kind of odd, but I think it fits the story):

A scientist says to God, “We no longer need you. We can create life without you. We know how to do it.”

God replies, “Really? Show me!”

The scientist begins, “First, we take some dirt…”

God interrupts: “Get your own dirt!”

There is a wonderful website that I have stumbled across, and I think many of you will enjoy it as much as I have… but be warned, it can be addicting!

The site is called freerice.com. A word appears on the screen, along with four definitions. You click on the one you think is correct, and if it is right, you have just earned 20 grains of rice. The game constantly adjusts itself to your skill level, so it gets progressively harder (or easier!). And it grades you as you go, giving you a vocabulary level. Each correct answer adds another 20 grains of rice to your total.

Sponsor banners appear at the bottom of the screen, and the money generated by those banners ultimately is used to buy the rice. So, by playing the game, you raise money that pays for the rice donated to hungry people.

Free rice is not a registered non-profit, but is run entirely for free and makes no money. All money collected by the site goes directly to the United Nations World Food Program. The WFP is the world’s largest food assistance agency, and also helps people learn to become self-reliant so that they can escape the culture of hunger permanently. Food is purchased locally, which supports local farmers and the community. Click WFP to learn more about the organization.

About 25,000 people die each day from hunger, according to the U.N. The rice that you can donate will make such a difference in lives around the world. It is a gift of life.

And remember, while you are earning 20 grains of rice at a time, there are thousands of others playing as well, and the numbers add up. In the first five months of it’s existence, freerice.com generated enough rice to feed one million people!

As of June 1, more than 35 BILLION grains of rice have been donated!

I am sure that you will enjoy this site as much as I do. And for those of you on facebook, you can put the application on your profile and invite your friends to play, as well.

Please pass the word about this great website. I’m going to add it to my blog roll, and I hope those of you with blogs will do the same.

Many of you have commented on the blog I did regarding Adam Race, the 13 year old autistic boy in Minnesota who’s church took out a restraining order to keep him from attending services there (Church takes out restraining order against family in Minnesota). You may remember that The Church of St. Joseph argues that Adam, who stands over six feet tall and weighs more than 225 pounds, presents a danger to others and has had to be restrained by his parents. In court papers, The Rev. Daniel Walz claims that Adam has hit a child and nearly knocked over elderly parishioners, has spit and urinated in the church.

Carol Race denies the allegations. “He’s never actually injured anyone,” she said. “He’s never knocked down anyone. He’s never urinated on anyone or spit on anyone.”

Carol Race will appear in court today (June 2) for violating the restraining order. She contends that, as Catholics, it is a sin for her family to not attend Mass on Sundays and every holy day of obligation. When the church offered a video feed to the basement, the Race family refused, saying that would not fulfill their obligation of attending mass.

Others have taken up the cause of the Race family. The Rupps, a family from St. Paul who has an autistic daughter, made the drive to St. Joseph’s on Memorial Day weekend, and sat in the pew where the Races normally sit, in a show of support for the family.

A lay mediator is scheduled to meet with church officials and the family on Wednesday, in what has become a very contentious battle. On the one hand, it can be said that no one should be denied attending church. But on the other hand, members have the right to expect to be safe when they attend. Many Christians face health reasons that keep them from attending mass… that does not preclude them from heaven. The service can be brought to them, or other arrangements can be made for observance of the Eucharist. There are provisions for those who cannot attend mass.

I will continue to provide follow-ups as they arise to this story that has touched so many in different ways. But let’s all be praying that this situation will be worked out without further animosity between the two groups, and that, in the end, God will be praised.

And please remember, beyond the sound bites and headlines, there are people on both sides who are both hurting and looking for answers.

I encourage you to click the following link for an interesting look at both viewpoints. The first is a letter from a priest who knows the mother, Carol Race, while the second is from a mother who also has a severely autistic child. Both opinions are heartfelt and informative.

Two informed viewpoints on the situation

Pictured above: The Steven Curtis Chapman family.
L-R, Will Franklin, Maria (on Steven’s lap), Steven, Shaoey,
Mary Beth, Stevey Joy, Caleb and Emily)

I can’t explain much in this world. There is so much pain and suffering everywhere. Earthquakes, tornadoes, terrorism, war. It is so easy to see it on television, but then relegate it to the back of the mind and move on. Frankly, that is probably a good thing, because it can be so overwhelming to deal with the horror and tragedy that this world can bring.

But now and then something happens that cuts a little bit close to home. Something that takes your breath away, and leaves you hollow and wondering, “Why, Lord?”

I had that feeling as I read about the tragedy that has occurred to Grammy award-winning Christian singer Steven Curtis Chapman and his family. Chapman’s youngest daughter, Maria (5), was killed in the family’s driveway on Wednesday when she was hit by a car driven by her teenage brother. The teen was driving a Toyota Land Cruiser down the driveway, where several children were playing. He apparently did not see Maria in the driveway.

The accident occurred just south of Nashville, at the Chapman home. Maria was life-flighted to Vanderbilt, where she was pronounced dead.

The Chapman family have six children, including three daughters adopted from China. Maria is the youngest. The family has given so much to so many, and were in the midst of celebrating the engagement of Emily, their oldest daughter, and the upcoming high school graduation of son, Caleb.

This is a double-tragedy for the family. Not only must they deal with the death of their beautiful daughter, but they must find some way to comfort their son. (The family has not released the name of the son involved in the accident).

How their hearts must be breaking tonight! I cannot imagine the pain of that family.

But what I do know is this. The Chapman family loves God. They know Him intimately. He led them to China to adopt, and it is no mistake that Maria is their daughter. She was meant to be their daughter before she drew her first breath on this planet. Before this pain entered their lives, God was already there, preparing to comfort and heal the Earthly pain and hurt. God was not surprised.
His love will see them through the days and weeks to come. And one glorious day, this family will be reunited at the throne of God.

Please pray for this family, and all those in this beautiful, horrible world, that all may receive peace and rest at the throne of God.

Please click on the link below to watch a lovely video of Maria and her dad.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tn8ajucsXr8

This is probably going to be a pretty random blog today… kind of my rant against the world. Hang in there with me!

Non-believers, and those who would love to portray Christians in a negative light, are always on the lookout for examples to prove that we are all hypocrites.

Most recently, I have seen subtle comments made regarding the photos of Miley Cyrus, particularly the one taken by Annie Leibovitz that appeared in Vanity Fair.

In case you haven’t seen it, the photo shows Cyrus with what appears to be a satin sheet held over her chest, bare-backed, looking over her shoulder. Somewhat of a “come hither” photo, as my mom would say. There is no nudity, but it is implied.

Now, since Cyrus is a stalwart of the Disney Family (”Hannah Montana”on the Disney Channel), the media were quick to jump on the story. Oh, Disney’s sweetheart and current top-money maker is going down the Britney/Lindsay path to destruction.

Fair enough comparison, considering that path is pretty well-worn by now. And inappropriate photos which appeared online, where Cyrus is shown showing off her bra (while wearing it) added fuel to the fire, as it were.

People Magazine covered the “scandal,” alluding to the Cyrus family’s strong Christian faith… breathlessly wondering what went wrong… could she and her faith be phony? This is the same magazine that applauded the Cyrus family and their values a few short months ago.

Parents of her fans are being quoted as being “disappointed,” “saddened,” and worried about how this will effect their daughters

OK, I have a few problems with this whole thing.

First of all… we should all know by now that if we are allowing “personalities” to serve as the primary influence in our children’s lives, then we aren’t doing our jobs as parents. Sure, they will naturally want to imitate and emulate these “stars,” but our duty is to keep it in perspective for our children, and not let them become so involved that they are willing to give up their character to copy a “character.”

Second, if we want to raise morally-responsible, strong Christian children, we need to give them less Hannah Montana and more of Christ. When was the last time you had a devotional with your child? Knelt at the side of their bed at night and prayed? Went as a family to church? Those are the difference makers. Hannah Montana is here today, gone tomorrow. Christ is forever, and our children need to know that!

But here is the kicker, at least for me. I agree that the photos are inappropriate. I agree 100% that they should have never been taken, much less published. But I have seen worse. And not in Hollywood.

This past weekend my four year old daughter and I went to a dance competition. My friend had a four year old in the competition, which was for all ages and included all types of dance (ballet, jazz, tap, hip hop, show as well as solo, group, and duet and trio). Emilee was so excited, and we had a blast. But my friend warned me when one category was about to start that it might not be appropriate. I poo-pooed her. Heck, they were four and five year olds, how bad could it be?

Bad.

Very Bad.

Moves that strippers would be proud to do, in fact. We headed out of the auditorium pretty quickly, coming back when that category was over. But it turned out that creative dance instructors and parents can work questionable dance moves into any type of routine (ok, ballet seemed immune). Even tap. TAP, for goodness sake!

Now, here is the amazing part (to me, at least… and I promise I wasn’t raised in a cave).

I didn’t see very much of this suggestive kind of dance out of the older kids or young adults. In fact, it was almost entirely performed by the 4-8 year old dancers. And when they would “bust a move” the moms and dads in the audience would go wild. These children were performing very sexually suggestive moves.

I wondered how many of these same moms and dads would have their children in church the next day. If so, talk about a mixed message. If not, are these the same parents who were so “disturbed” by the Miley Cyrus photos?

Here we are, as Christians, with the greatest example of parenthood in the world, and we forget to use Him. That’s right, God. He is our Father. Our relationship with Him should be the one we use to model our relationship with our children.

A comment you hear a lot in this world is how children don’t come with an instruction book. Yes, they do… The Bible. God’s word. You may have to study it, pray over it. But can you think of a better book to lead you in parenting?

Who is setting an example for your children? And is it the right example?

For wonderful insights into Christian parenting, visit Parenting and Religion

Perhaps you have heard of the new Ben Stein movie, Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. A friend of mine emailed me about it several weeks ago, and Christian radio had been promoting it, so my husband and I decided to check it out last weekend.

The movie, which is actually a pseudo-documentary, follows Stein as he travels the world interviewing educators and scientists who have been denied tenure, or perhaps even been fired, over their views that the universe might not be random, but could have been created by design. In short, these scientists appear to be questioning Darwinism. As you can imagine, this isn’t the most popular idea in the scientific community.According to Walt Ruloff, co-executive producer and co-founder of Premise Media (which is producing the film), “People will be stunned to actually find out what elitist scientists proclaim, which is that a large majority of Americans are simpletons who believe in a fairy tale.”And that is what came across. University spokespersons and department heads who were interviewed seemed to have an air of “let them eat cake,” never quite calling the masses that believe in one god or another foolish followers of a fairy tale, but the interpretation was there. And those who were fired were sympathetic characters, telling their tales of how colleagues told them to just let it go, stick with the party line.I’m not sure what I went to the movie expecting. Maybe I thought it was going to be a “rah rah, our side is right, your side is wrong” kind of victory for those of us that believe that God created the heavens and the earth, as it is written the Bible. Ben Stein is an intelligent man, perhaps I thought that finally those who deny God in the creation of the world would have met their match. And, indeed, Stein did succeed in making many in academia look foolish, close-minded and egotistical. But something just didn’t hit me right.The movie took too much at face value for me. There wasn’t much investigating into why some of the professors were let go. The universities themselves couldn’t comment (privacy issues), and usually in these cases the truth lies somewhere in the middle. It felt like I was only getting half the story. And later, I found out that those who agreed to be interviewed had been told it was for a movie called Crossroads: The Intersection of Science and Religion, and only later found out the movie’s intentions in relation to ID.Towards the end of the movie, a connection is made between Hitler’s Nazi Germany and Darwinism. Indeed, much of Mein Kampf speaks of the strong defeating the weak and of “lower” races of humans. There is much footage of Jews in concentration camps, and Stein himself makes a trip to a camp where Jews were put to death.I think I know where Stein and the producers wanted to go with this movie. I believe that initially their intent was to show that the halls of academia aren’t as open to oppositional thinking as many would have us believe. But I think the movie lost it’s focus at some point, and instead of delving deeply and giving us the meat of the issue, it was more of a touch and go process, spread out to thin. And I think they didn’t give the audience enough credit, stooping to attempts to entertain rather than thoroughly flesh out the topic.The movie made some wonderful, eye-opening points. I think that many would enjoy it, and can learn from it. I just wish that there had been less “infotainment” and more plain old information.

Prophetess Juanita Bynum and her husband/attacker appeared in court on Tuesday for his sentencing. Taking into consideration a personal plea from Dr. Bynum not to give jail time, Bishop Weeks received three years probation and 200 hours of non-church related community service. He also must complete anger management counseling.

According to the AP, Dr. Bynum and her husband are “working on their marriage and the status of their relationship.” They left the courthouse together after the sentencing.

The attack on Dr. Bynum by Bishop Weeks occured in the parking lot of an Atlanta hotel last August. LCW reported on the incident in two previous articles, Televangelist Juanita Bynum Assaulted by Husband and Dr. Bynum’s Attack Brings to Light Abuse in Christian Marriage.

The story was hotly debated between supporters of both parties, with some even blaming Prophetess Bynum for her husband’s behavior. No indications have been made that Bishop Weeks had ever physically harmed his wife prior to the August attack. Dr. Bynum has shown courage and strength of faith in her recovery and dealing with the aftermath of intense public interest in a very private matter.

Would you have done the same in a similar situation? LCW has explored domestic violence in Christian marriage in the past. Arguments and Biblical justification have been given for both getting out of the situation and pursuing divorce, and remaining married and trying to work through it. In light of Juanita Bynum’s apparent decision to at least attempt to save her marriage, what are your thoughts?

Feel free to leave comments and debate the outcome of Bishop Weeks’ sentencing.

Juanita Bynum, Bishop Weeks, Bishop Weeks sentence, christians and domestic violence

Christian missionary agencies are being credited with an increased Christian population in Yemen. A report from the Yemen Post cites research by Dr. Abdul Qawi Al-Tab’ee showing a growing organized Christian movement in the country. The Islamic World League is also said to have issued a report “warning” of the trend in Yemen and the influence of missions.

The American Presbyterians were the first into the country in 1941, followed by the Baptists after the change of government in 1964. Though strictly forbidden to share the Gospel during their relief work, it appears these missions are doing just that and even managing to hand out literature about the faith.

According to the article Researcher Warns Christianity Growth in Yemen, there are over 4,800 associations that work within Yemen. Many of these organizations are assisting the refugee camps located in the southern part of the nation.

The league attributed the success of Christianity campaign in Yemen to the absence of attention by Muslims together with the spread of poverty, unemployment, illiteracy, wars, racial and tribal discrimination.

According to media sources, missionary work in Yemen is made through international associations and organizations with interest in motherhood, childhood, handicaps, environment and tourism affairs together as well as private schools, language institutes and those organizations sending Yemeni students abroad.

Though some Christian missionaries have been killed over the years in Yemen, they are clearly providing much-needed services. Still, the article states, “This news comes in shock to a country known to be free from Christians as only very few Christian Yemenis exist in Aden, which officials say that they are not of Yemeni root.” A brief look at the headlines of the Yemen Post website will tell you why the faith is growing.

“Bread Prices Increase 100 Percent”
“Saudi Border Guards Arrest Yemeni Weapon Smugglers”
“Kidnappings Continue to Grow: Families Call for Action”
“Food Contamination Key in Cancer Increase.”

Those headlines are just from the front page. (March 3, 2008 Issue:19). A warning of the increase in Christianity from researchers and officials makes one wonder what the situation will be for missionaries in the near future. As war, refugee camps, economic woes and environmental crises continue, will Christians once again find themselves being exiled from the country, as occurred across the whole Arabian peninsula in the 7th century? Or, will they become bolder in sharing the Gospel along with the resources so desparately needed?

Image Source: Yemen - Sanaa, www.yemenshipping.com

christian, christian missions, Yemen, Yemeni christians, missionaries

Shelby Kandle is a beautiful 16-year-old young woman. She has the same dreams a lot of teenage girls have of wanting to be fashion model or maybe becoming a teacher. She enjoys sports, photography, and playing the guitar. What makes Shelby special is that she also has a desire to help raise money to aid medical research. Shelby Kandle has Cystic Fibrosis, a disease for which there is no cure and the average lifespan is mid- to late-30’s.

Through the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Shelby has become a team leader in raising money for awareness and research, hoping a more effective treatment or even a cure can be discovered. Great Strides is an annual national fund-raising walk, and Shelby has organized her own team of walkers to help her meet a goal of raising $6,000.00.

This remarkable high school sophomore sometimes struggles with going to school, having to miss days or leave early because of severe stomach aches or pain in her lungs, in addition to her numerous surgeries and hospitalizations. Frequent trips to the restroom frustrate both Shelby and her teachers. She has also faced the emotional struggles of dealing with CF. Shelby said, “There have been many times when I have gotten really depressed because of my CF. I felt different from others and I was scared of dying at a young age. It was hard for me to help myself from feeing that way.”

Shelby’s faith and support from family and friends give her the strength to cope with the chronic problems of having CF and to try to make a difference for herself and others. “I used to not believe there was a God because I wondered why God would make some people go through the things they did,” said Shelby. But now, faith “gives me the strength to not give up. And it has made me think more positively about things. I find myself always trying to make myself a better person in some way.”

Shelby does have some advice for parents of chronically ill children. “It’s always nice to have a supportive parent. I think all parents should be understanding with what the child is going through. They should try to help the child feel better. And some parents might need to realize that when a child seems depressed, they usually really are depressed. I hate to think that some parents would just think the child is acting just to get attention.”

In a letter to the public featured on her Cystic Fibrosis Foundation webpage, Shelby explains about CF, its effects on young people, and how you can help.

Hey there! My name is Shelby Kandle. I am 16 years old and I am the daughter of Luanne Stone and Paul Kandle. I have struggled with a lung condition called Cystic Fibrosis (CF) ever since I was born! And now I feel like I need to really start fighting back before CF takes my life away from me.

Cystic Fibrosis is a devastating genetic disease that affects about 30,000 children and young adults in the United States and about 70,000 worldwide. A defective gene and its protein product cause the body to produce unusually thick, sticky mucus that clogs the lungs and leads to life-threatening lung infections, it obstructs the pancreas and stops natural enzymes from helping the body break down and absorb food, and the sticky mucus also clogs up the sinuses, making horrible sinus infections.

Not everyone has it as badly as someone else. Even though I have had 8 sinus surgeries, and I have been hospitalized many times for lung infections and coughing up pure blood, I am one of the lucky ones! There are kids as young as 10 that are waiting for lung transplants right now! The median age for CFers to live to is only 37 years old. The Cystic Fibrosis Foundations needs all the help they can get to help come up with advances in treatments and medicines. That’s why I am asking for your help and donations. Every dollar counts and too many young lives depend on this vital research to let it go unfunded!

This is my second year participating in a fund-raising event called Great Strides. It is the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s largest and most successful national fund-raising event. This year, I am walking in the Great Strides event in Dothan [Alabama] at the West Gate Park site on 05/17/2008. Please help me meet my fund-raising goal of $6,000 by sponsoring me.

Making a donation is easy and secure! Just click on the link below to make a donation to my fund-raising page where your donation will be credited to my team. Any amount you can donate is greatly appreciated! You’ll feel confident in knowing that your generous gift is used efficiently and effectively: nearly 90 cents out of every dollar you contribute goes directly toward supporting research and specialized care that improves the quality of life for those with CF. And, it’s tax-deductible.

Shelby’s Great Strides Donation Site

Donating to GREAT STRIDES is such a simple and effective way for you to show your support for this important cause. Together, we can make a difference in the lives of those with CF! Once again, thank you for supporting the mission of the CF Foundation!

Thank you,

Shelby Kandle

View My Personal Invitation!

Visit the CF Foundation Web Site

If you encounter a problem with a link, please visit my GREAT STRIDES Home Page at http://www.cff.org/Great_Strides/ShelbyKandle!

NOTE: If the link looks broken, cut and paste ENTIRE link into address bar. If you are presented with a “Find A Walker” page, enter my first and last name and click on “Find Walker.” Then click “View Walker” by my name in the results list to go to “My GREAT STRIDES Home Page.”

Thank you,
Shelby Kandle

cystic fibrosis, CFF, Shelby Kandle, Great Strides, christian women

Spend just a brief period time on the global environment of the Internet, and you will come across Christian-bashing. Christians are a distinct minority often viewed with suspicion at best and hatred at worst. We are accused of being closed-minded, unaccepting, pushy, bigoted, unintelligent hypocrits. I try to ignore most arguments, realizing that accepting Christ is personal choice that must be made through free will as God intended. And then I read an article from a Christian source that makes me cringe and think, “No wonder you hate us!”

In a press release featured on Christian News Wire, the organization Concerned Women for America (CWA) published ” ‘Gays’ May Spread Deadly Staph Infection to General Population.” Based on a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, CWA is using a report rife with “maybe’s” to call for Christians to take action:

Citizens, especially parents, need to stand up and say, ‘No More! We will no longer sit idly by while politically correct cultural elites endanger our children and larger communities through propagandist promotion of this demonstrably deadly lifestyle.

The press release does not mention that MRSA (Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus) is classified two ways — hospital-associated and community-associated. It does not bother to cite information from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), one of the world’s most respected public health organizations, that states men who have sex with men are only one of six different groups at higher risk for contracting the disease, which also include inmates in correctional facilities, competitive sports participants, military recruits, day care attendees, and Native Americans. The “homosexual lifestyle” is used as umbrella statement in the release, never mentioning that drug abuse, multiple sexual partners, inadequate hygiene and compromised immune system factor into that higher risk. And no where in the propagandist release will you find the cautionary statements from the published study itself:

Limitations: The study was retrospective, and sexual risk behavior was not assessed.

Cautions: The data were passively reported or retrospectively collected and are therefore subject to bias.

“Our study has limitations. Our incidence estimates for San Francisco come from a passive surveillance system and may underestimate the incidence of true infection. We relied on retrospective chart review for identification of risk factors for multidrug-resistant USA300 infection in the 2 clinic populations; because data were not collected or documented systematically, our estimates of risk may be influenced by selection, referral, documentation, or other biases. Specific sexual behaviors were not assessed or documented in clinic charts; we therefore cannot comment on the association between multidrug-resistant USA300 infection and specific male–male sexual practices. Finally, because the number of multidrug-resistant USA300 infection within risk-factor subgroups was small, some of our higher estimates of risk are statistically compatible with more modest risk increases (that is, many of the CIs are wide and their lower bounds approach 1.0).”

["Emergence of Multidrug-Resistant, Community-Associated, Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Clone USA300 in Men Who Have Sex with Men." Annals of Internal Medicine. Retrieved January 17, 2008.]

The CWA press release appears to be strongly approaching hate propaganda, using a thinly veiled concern for public health to stoke fear and prejudice against homosexuals. Is CA-MRSA going to replace AIDS as the next Christians-against-gays rallying cry? Matt Barber certainly seems to be trying his darndest to make it so. The spread of the disease in the community has to do with lifestyle choices, period. The term “gays” is not called for, and requires much more research and more controlled studies, as admitted to by the researchers themselves.

Barber further stated, “The human body is quite callous in how it handles mistreatment and the perversion of its natural functions. When two men mimic the act of heterosexual intercourse with one another, they create an environment, a biological counterfeit, wherein disease can thrive. Unnatural behaviors beget natural consequences.”

He makes it sound as if MRSA is a direct result of men having sex with men. Never mind that it has long been a very real health concern in hospitals. Never mind that over-use of antibiotics increases risk. MRSA did not develop in the gay community. It is the natural evolution of a species (bacteria) fighting for survival against extinction by man’s development of antibiotics. Plants do the same thing by developing poisonous berries or thorns to keep from being wiped out by herbivores.

History has shown time and again that diseases will develop and spread. This is a process of nature, or even risky sexual behaviors, but not exclusively homosexuality. AIDS began its spread down the Kinshasa Highway due to the prevalent prostitution trade. The plagues in Europe owed their rise to economic trade. Ebola developed in the jungles of Africa. Christian medical missionaries were the first to bring Lassa fever to the US.

When I first read the press release on Christian News Wire, I sent it to fellow blogger Adrien who writes Darkside Rainbow. I was interested in knowing how it made him feel as a gay man. He very eloquently expressed his reaction in his post, I will stand. I urge you to read it and think about his emotions. Is this how you want your Christianity to impact someone? Is the goal of your Christian witness to alienate and ostracize? Or to love?

CA-MRSA is a very valid health concern. I simply ask that you take time to read the facts before buying into the latest anti-gay campaign. Exercise your Christian compassion and love. God accepts EVERYONE, and in His eyes your life is no better than anyone else’s. For Christ’s sake, use the brain God gave you to learn the truth!

Get the facts on MRSA from the CDC

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Jin Yani lives in China. She became pregnant before she could legally marry her fiancee, but they did marry when she turned 20 (at five months pregnant.) She carried the baby to term. At nine months, her water broke as she went into labor. That’s when the Chinese authorities seized her, injected her baby, and removed it’s dead body two days later.

In an unprecendented case, Mrs. Jin and her husband are suing the authorities for damages. In America and most other countries, it would have been murder. The most this couple can hope for is money to cover their expenses and distress. Not to mention the fact that, after the murder of her child, Mrs. Jin suffered severe bleeding and is now unable to conceive again.

I don’t care what side of the abortion debate you are on. No one can argue that a full term baby is not a human being. China’s one child policy has been responsible for the termination of pregnancies on a massive scale, as well as baby girls being left to die in the hopes that the couple might have a boy. This case will be the first of its kind in that the courts have agreed to hear it.

According to the Telegraph, the Mrs. Jin’s husband was offered a job and free medical care for his wife after the regional court agreed to hear their case. He turned it down, stating, “We can get a job anywhere.” What this couple cannot get is their baby girl back. They cannot get back Mrs. Jin’s ability to have another child. They cannot hold little Yang Yin, the name they chose for their infant.

What this couple from China can get is support from all of us. The outcome of this court case will set the precedent in a country whose government has ruthlessly slaughtered infants for decades. Enough is enough. Pray for Mrs. Jin and for the court system. Tell others about this case. Get mad. This is one time when righteous anger is called for, and the power of our Lord is needed to avenge Yang Yin’s murder!

christianity, china one child policy, christian news, forced abortion, women’s rights

Alabama churches have been burning. Again. Three churches were vandalized and set on fire beginning on January 1, 2008.

Every couple of years, congregations in Alabama are disrupted by a string of fires. The last time it happened, two years, ago, the culprits were college kids from Birmingham. This time, the two young men are self-professed Satan worshippers.

Usually when the fires hit the state’s Christian community, they are set at rural, small churches which abound state-wide. These out-of-the-way churches serve the small communities, and traffic around them is close to non-existent at night. The location is what makes them such targets. It also means that these churches bring in barely enough money to pay their pastor, much less repair or rebuild the damaged property.

I’ve got to hand to this grandmother. She refused to be cowed by her grandson and his alleged friend-from-hell, and turned them in to the police. According to the Montgomery Advertiser, Geoffrey Parquette and James Clark, both 21, were arrested after a housekeeper found a cross in Parquette’s room. She reported it to his grandmother, who then searched his room and found other stolen items from the churches.

The three churches that were burned and vandalized were the Greater Peace and Goodwill AME Church in Crawford, the Greater Bethelpore Baptist Church in Smiths Station, and Woodland Baptist Church in the Ladonia community. A fourth church, Concord Baptist, had satanic graffiti painted in it. One graffiti message stated, “Teach children to worship Satan!!”

The arrests have set minds at ease across small churches everywhere, but the congregations effected have a lot of work ahead of them. Please keep those churches in your prayers as they begin cleaning and rebuilding.

I live in Alabama, so let me know if you add these churches or the boys to your prayer list. I will pass along any messages to the appropriate people.

If you have a prayer request or praise you would like to share, leave me a comment or use the contact link in my profile. The latest prayer request left by a reader can be seen here.

Image Source: Jay Reeves, Montgomery Advertiser

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